Pennsylvania judge defers voter discrimination law till after the election

A judge on Tuesday blocked Pennsylvania from requiring voters to show identification in November’s U.S. election, a decision that could influence turnout in a top electoral prize in the presidential race.

Commonwealth Court Judge Robert Simpson issued a partial preliminary injunction that halts the requirement that people show either a state driver’s license, government employee ID or a state non-driver ID card in order to vote on November 6…

Simpson, on orders from the state’s highest court to revisit his August ruling upholding the law, indicated the law could be implemented for future elections. He set a hearing for December 13 to schedule further proceedings in the case…

“This is a victory for the petitioners and people who will be able to vote on Election Day,” said Marian Schneider, one of the attorneys for the groups challenging the law.

National attention has been focused on the court fight over the law requiring voters to show a photo ID. The Republican-led Pennsylvania legislature passed it in March without a single Democratic vote.

The state of Pennsylvania has acknowledged that there has never been a case of in-person voter fraud, according to court testimony.

That has been the case in every state where Republican governors, Republican-controlled state legislatures pushed this crap last-minute law through. They wasted taxpayer dollars trying to prove there was fraud and failed. They pressed ahead and passed laws premised on stopping fraud – that doesn’t exist. Truth remains – they’re trying to stop people from voting who generally vote for Democrats.

Given the history of the United States, a nation founded in discrimination that worked its way through the enfranchisement of women and Black folks – the nationwide effort by the Party-formerly-known-as-Republican is beneath contempt. And anyone who is fool enough to stand up in public and argue the phony case they try to make to justify this crime deserves as little respect as the hypocrites in charge of the campaign.

2 comments

Excellent piece…thanks for sharing. The recent onslaught of voter suppression laws are not being discussed articulately by any media outlet. Like many people, I am frustrated that the voter fraud happening in Florida by the GOP is not causing more of an uproar…I mean, the party that accuses Democrat voters of committing voter fraud is the party doing the fraud. I am not the least bit surprised by any of this..just bummed out by the apathy..